Johnson then added: ‘I’m going to stab an air hostess and kill everybody on the plane.’

Mrs Wood told the court: ‘Paula James had the misfortune to be sat next to him on the plane. She saw him drinking from the bottle.

‘Miss James says, “I felt petrified but I kept calm because there was a row of children sat behind us with their teachers”.’

The court heard that Johnson’s drunken antics had caused disruption to many of the 153 passengers whose holidays and travel were delayed until the following day – and cost easyJet tens of thousands of pounds.

Johnson represented himself in court. He said: ‘I was in the toilet for seven minutes and I heard over the PA system that they were turning the plane back because someone was being violent and disruptive.

He became abusive on a flight to Malaga (Picture: Getty)

‘I knew I was going to be arrested so for a minute or so I said things like, “that’s out of order”. It was not loud and I wasn’t shouting and I was mumbling to myself.

‘This lasted for less than a minute and I wasn’t violent. I swear I never said anything about stabbing anyone and I never used the words ‘hit a hostess’.’

Johnson added: ‘If I had given them the alcohol I would not have been arrested but I decided to empty it down the toilet. I am sorry about that. I have been out of trouble for a long time and I wish there was some alternative to prison.’

The court heard that easyJet has since banned him from flying with them ever again.

Jailing him for eight months, Judge Michael Longman said Johnson’s behaviour would have disrupted holidays, business meetings and flight schedules, as well as causing ‘fear and alarm’ for passengers.

‘You accept that you drunk some wine from the bottle you had retained and that was witnessed by others,’ he said.

‘You were asked by the cabin crew to put the bottle in an overhead locker, which was an instruction that you disobeyed and one way or another you went to the toilet and disposed of the wine.

‘You drunken behaviour had already come to the attention of fellow passengers and the decision was taken to return to Bristol.

‘Your response was to make violent threats to cabin staff and the pilot and to kill everybody on board.’

The judge added: ‘The vast majority of aircraft passengers are sensible and law abiding and when people act irresponsibly and idiotically like you did, sentences of imprisonment will always be required.

‘I take into account there was no physical violence although the oral threats were bad enough. In the circumstances there must be a sentence of immediate imprisonment.’